“…..and so the lion fell in love with the lamb.”

Please make your way to Falvey Memorial Library and enter our Twilight basket drawing.  This movie night thriller contains both Twilight and New Moon, the latest DVD edition to the Twilight saga, as well as delicious movie night munchies.

Donations will be accepted through April 15, when the winner of the basket will be announced.  All proceeds will go to Catholic Relief Services for the Haitian relief effort.

For a sparkling evening of fangs, friendship and fun, please consider donating  $1.00 for a chance to win and to help those in need.

Together we can make a difference!

-Falvey Team (of the University Staff Council)

by Alice Bampton and Judy Olsen

Playing off basketball season’s March Madness, Falvey features “Midterm Madness” in the first floor window display, clearly directing you to helpful “regionals” like Interlibrary Loan and E-Z Borrow, “Scholarly Stuff at the Speed of Wikipedia,” Reference Desk, Library Info Services Desk, RefWorks and Other Amenities.

Created by Joanne Quinn, the cultural displays designer for the Events and Outreach team, each bracket contains clear, concise and useful information. In the center, “Playing the Zone Defense – Meet Your Liaison Librarian” provides the names, photographs and areas of expertise of those librarians who can direct you to appropriate information sources: Alfred Fry, Barbara Quintiliano, Linda Hauck, Bente Polites, Jackie Mirabile, Taras Ortynsky, Merrill Stein, Robin Bowles, Jutta Seibert, Darren Poley, Susan Ottignon, Judith Olsen and Dennis Lambert.

Framing the display are dark curtains decorated with those coveted game tickets and at the bottom of the window are numerous basketballs. Get an assist and make the grade.

By Luisa Cywinski & Gerald Dierkes

Do library statistics tell us what you want from Falvey? Absolutely!

For instance, ever since Falvey Library purchased two Kindles last year, they have been in non-stop circulation. Based on that data, we’re planning to purchase more e-readers in the future. Do you want the Library to make these and other cutting-edge technologies available to our students? Which new technologies would you prefer?

One way the Library answers such questions is to gather statistics. Last year, for example, Falvey maintained 16 Dell laptop computers for you to borrow. Although Falvey’s laptop computers are for Library use only, they are capable of sending work to the Library’s public printers or to I-print. Last year Villanovans borrowed these computers well over 5,000 times, which is the reason we’ve expanded our pool of circulating laptops to include three MacBooks.

In addition to technological items, last year Villanovans borrowed 6,136 books from other libraries though E-ZBorrow and InterLibrary Loan. The E-Z Borrow system links 75 academic and research libraries in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and West Virginia. If E-ZBorrow member libraries don’t have the book you need, try InterLibrary Loan (ILL).  Through ILL, you can borrow books from academic libraries across the country and even internationally-at no cost to you. Requesting books for your courses this way, instead of purchasing them, can save you a good deal of money.

We know that students use Falvey Library to study. Did you know that Villanova students used the Library’s group-study rooms 2,281 times last year, and they accessed the after-hours study lounge nearly 10,000 times?  When classes are canceled due to winter weather, as they were quite recently, Falvey’s study lounge, accessible 24 hours with a valid Wildcard, provides an alternative to studying in your dorm.

As the Library relies on statistics in determining the services we provide to you, we also depend on your comments, feedback and suggestions to help us better serve you. Tell us what you think on Falvey Library’s Facebook page.  It’s where we announce library events, post new service and resource updates, and hold timely discussions.

Or you can make a suggestion on the Library’s homepage.

Questions?  In person: Come to the Information Desk or consult the librarian on duty.  Online-you have several choices:

• Submit your questions via email with the “Ask a Librarian” link (on Falvey’s homepage).
• Click on the “Get Help” tab.
• Some librarians have online chat sessions, which can be initiated from the Subject Guide pages.
• For an immediate response, click on “Ask a Librarian: Live Chat.”

We hope to hear from you soon!

Literature Criticism Online (Gale) takes literature, history and culture to the next level with its most extensive curated compilation of literary commentary available. The award-winning Gale series that comprise Literature Criticism Online represent a range of modern and historical views on authors and their works across regions, eras and genres. Imagine centuries of analysis – the scholarly and popular commentary from broadsheets, pamphlets, encyclopedias, books and periodicals – delivered in an easy format that matches the exact look and feel of the print originals.

From the library home page, go to Databases A-Z to locate Literature Criticism Online.

Gale literary references reach back 20 to 30 years. Now, hundreds of volumes are digitized and ready to read 24/7 online. The net result is tens of thousands of hard-to-find essays at your fingertips. It’s all designed to raise the level of research while providing around-the-clock remote access that today’s researchers demand.

Falvey has subscribed to these  literary series from Gale:

• Classical and Medieval Literature Criticism
• Poetry Criticism
• Short Story Criticism
• Drama Criticism

Comments or questions?

Falvey offers the University community online access to the Chronicle of Higher Education, “the No. 1 source of news, information, and jobs for college and university faculty members and administrators.” Widely valued for the timeliness and credibility of its news coverage, the Chronicle has won numerous awards for its coverage of political issues with impact on higher education. (more…)